Miles
by blueberry-kun
Summary: / ino & sakura (friendship) / I just need some time to figure out my life.
1. Chapter 1

**Miles**

summary**— I just need some time to figure out my life. **

disclaimer**— mmm mm!**

notes**— hi :D. Idk, I really like this idea, and have it played out pretty nicely in my head ^-^ The summary was actually really hard to do, cause I didn't wanna have this huge long thing there, so here's the plot of my story in a nutshell :P**

**Read away!**

* * *

"Listen, I'm not a bitch." were the first words Ino Yamanaka had said in over 20 minutes. Until then, she'd been sitting indifferently in front of her blonde, busty therapist, filing her nails.

"No one ever said you were, Ino." replied Dr. Senju. "Look, I know you don't want to be in this situation, but at least try to cooperate. Why don't you start with telling why you're even here?"

"Because my parents don't think it'd look too hot if I had 'expelled from high school' stamped on my college application." Ino stated.

Which was an understatement. Konoha Academy was a school well-known for teaching the rich and elite, although it did offer financial aid for those who were smart enough to qualify. Even though 66 percent of its alumni went to an Ivy League school, being kicked out was a one way ticket to a community college.

"Okay, I drive all the way to God knows where, sit though your therapy, then you just sign my forms saying I did my time, and the principal saves some face. The end."

"Don't you think it was rather generous of Principal Namikaze to let you attend off-campus counseling, rather than expel you on the spot?"

Ino narrowed her icy blue eyes. "Of course, 'cause he's just so kind and his decision has nothing to do with the fact that my dad just paid for the new auditorium. Where'd you come from, anyway? I don't see any fancy-ass degrees from Snooty University for the Elite." she sneered.

The therapist smiled. "I don't find it necessary to display my education**—**or wealth."

Ino slipped off her camel-colored Miu Mius, tucking her thin legs under her body to get comfortable. It was obvious to her there were no signs of wealth in this rather small office. It was just a room painted with light green paint and lined with books. There was only one window, which was open to let an occasional breeze through that would ring some wooden chimes. The room itself was so plain, that it just made Dr. Senju stand out even more.

She looked young, maybe even younger than Ino's mother. Her hair was long and blonde and pulled neatly into two pigtails with a few locks that framed her face. She had light brown eyes, and a strange diamond shaped tattoo in the center of her forehead. Her outfit was a plain gray bandage top that was cut preeeettyyy low, and some blue capris that matched her heeled sandals. Her ensemble made Ino wonder if she had a bigger paint budget than clothes one.

"Okay, Dr. Senju**—**"

"Please, that's just a courtesy title. I want to seem more like your friend; call me Tsunade."

"Like I need any more friends, Doc." Ino rolled her eyes.

Tsunade's eyes flickered for just a second. Whether or not it was out of scorn of kindness, Ino wasn't sure. "You have yet to tell me why you're even here, Yamanaka."

"Please, Yamanaka's just a courtesy title. And I already told you: my dad set this up so I wouldn't get kicked out of KA."

"Do you find pride in your father's power, Yamanaka?"

The blonde girl shrugged, inspecting the immaculate sea foam polish for any (God forbid) chips. "I dunno. Ugh, can you just like, sign the form that says I'm done so we can all go back to our original lifestyles?"

"Ino, you were sent here for a reason. What reason would that be?"

"Because I'm a big, scary bully that everyone fears."

"Well, are you?" asked Tsunade.

"No."

"Then why would Principal Namikaze think so?"

Because people are just jealous, I guess." Ino answered. "It's not my fault if they wear ugly shoes. I didn't make them leave KA , I just made a few comments and a couple girls took it the wrong way."

"Ino," Tsunade looked at her tiredly, "I believe the actual number was four, which is more than a couple."

"It's not like they all left simultaneously."

"It's not about when Ino, it's about why."

"Like I said, it's not my fault if they wear outdated shoes, don't have clothes hat aren't from Old Navy, or if they're boyfriend isn't as hot as mine." Ino said, an expression on her face that said something like, 'duh'.

"That's interesting. It seems as though they are blaming you for their problems, which isn't an effective way to deal with things, is it?" concluded Tsunade.

Ino stretched her arms. "Hallelujah lady, that's what I'm preachin'."

The therapist flipped through a manila folder that read YAMANAKA, INO on the side, and pulled out a few pieces of paper filled with text. "So, Etsuko Hoshi's parents pulled out of school to attend an eating disorder clinic, not because of you, right?'

"I didn't give her chicken wings."

"And Hirumi Sato has seldom left her bed after that break-up with her boyfriend two weeks ago, but you took no part in that."

"Maybe I flipped my hair once or twice. Big deal."

"But it wasn't you who cut off Umeko Takahashi's hair in the girl's locker room, of course."

"She got really bad split ends after going back in forth from blonde to black freshman year; she should be thanking me."

"Akane Rokushima isn't attending a private school because her parents "couldn't stand hearing her heartbreaking sobs anymore, and want her to be somewhere she could make friends" after a rumor regarding her southern region was started by you?"

"Akane brought that on herself, everyone knows belly shirts are so early 2000."

Tsunade tucked her notes away. "I see. Now, what would have done, if you were in Akane's, Umeko's, Hirumi's or Etsuko's shoes? How would you have handled the situation."

Ino's phone buzzed in the pocket of her True Religions. She pulled it out, texting her best friend. "I don't know. Never had that problem, never will."

"So it's easy to say everyone likes you?"

"Well, everyone who matters." Ino said.

"Well then, you must be very special." replied Tsunade.

"Uh, yeah."

"So, " she continued, "how does a girl this special, end up spending her Thursday afternoon in a therapist's office, labeled a bully by her principal and the cause of four other girls' dropping out?"

Ino pondered that for a moment. "Probably cause they're stupid."

"Really? Is everyone stupid except you, Ino?"

"Maybe."

"Your boyfriend, too? Is he stupid?"

"Are you kidding? He's an idiot."

"Then why go out with him?" asked the therapist.

"Cause he's an idiot with a Lincoln and makes for good arm candy."

"Has it ever occurred to you that he likes you? Loves you, even?"

"Kiba? Please!" scoffed Ino. "We're a trophy couple. People expect us to be together. Now, can we just move on to the part where you tell me I have some kind of weird complex, please?"

Tsunade sighed. "Alright, your boyfriend doesn't love you, we've stated that much. So, does anyone love Ino Yamanaka?"

"Ohhhhmyyygodddd." trilled the young teen. "Yeah, because I'm one of those people. My mother doesn't love me! Wrong. She adores me. My father doesn't pay attention to me! As if. He's wrapped around each and every one of my fingers. Sorry lady, but you gotta take another angle or something cause that's not how Ino Yamanaka rolls."

Tsunade leaned forward, towards her patient. "Would you like to know what I think, Ino?"

"Shoot."

"I think you're here because you want to tell me something about yourself that you don't anyone else to find out about."

"Like?" coaxed the blonde.

"That's what we're going to find out, now aren't we?"

"Wow!" exclaimed Ino."Good job! Now I know why I'm here, Doc."

"Good. I believe our session is over. You had something for me to sign?"

Ino shuffled around her Abercrombie bag, extracting a wrinkled piece of paper. "You could just, you know, write that my therapy's done and I don't need to come back anymore; there's a space for comments."

"Oh, I wouldn't do that. Our sessions are personal and confidential."

"Whatever. Come on, I give you my consent, Doc."

Tsunade scribbled something on the paper with a purple-ink pen. "There."

Ino looked it over. "Patient has Severe Narcissism Disorder; further treatment is highly recommended! Hey, what's up with that?"

"Normally I wouldn't make such a premature diagnosis, but in your case I think it's called for. I'll see you Saturday."

"Saturday!" sputtered Ino. "You can't make me come on Saturday! It's the weekend and-and I have plans!"

"So do I," responded Tsunade. "But you can have Sunday off. Besides, I have some very special therapy set up for you on Saturday. I'll see you then."

* * *

notes**— damn I really should be asleep! :P What do you guys think? I personally like it so far, even if it's the first chap, but I really wanna know what **_**you **_**guys think, so please review! Thanks :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Miles**

summary**—I just need some time to figure out my life.**

disclaimer**—nu-uh.**

notes**—wow! Thank you guys for your favorites and reviews! I'm glad people actually like this :3**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Ino wore her Abercrombie sweat shorts and a black Victoria's Secret V-neck to therapy. Sure, Tsunade could make her show up, but she sure as hell couldn't make her participate or enjoy the experience.

She stomped into the room, rattling a few books on a rickety shelf nearby. Ino flopped down into the big, cushiony chair she'd sat in last time, and made a big show of texting again.

"You like pictures, don't you, Ino?" asked Tsunade as she pulled some out of her bag.

"Sure, if they're pictures of me." Ino replied snarkily. "Is that narcissistic enough for you?"

Tsunade ignored the comment. "Okay, I'm going to show you some images of teen girls, all about your age. I want you to tell me what your first impression of each one is." She held up the first picture, of a girl with long blonde hair, stunning green eyes, and a button nose. Had it not been for her eye color, the girl could've even passed for Ino.

"What do you think of her?"

"Loser." scoffed the teen. "She's a total wannabe; I mean, just look at that 'desperate hungry dog' look in her eyes. And those necklaces! Waaayyyy to many on."

"Really, now?" asked Tsunade. She turned the picture and looked at it herself. "She almost looks like the cover of a magazine to me."

Ino rolled her eyes. "Yeah, to you."

Tsunade held up another picture, and Ino immediately said, "Ew! Look at those shoes!"

"Is that really what you notice? Look at her; perfect hair, flawless skin, thin...but you only see her shoes?"

"Tch, yeah. Better dead than Ked." said Ino, flipping her hand as if waving off a fly.

This continued on, with the comments ranging from _slut; too much lipstick; BOTDF called and they want their makeup back; hair's taller than she is; cankles; face like a Cosmic Brownie. _But, there were three or four of them that Ino deemed as 'not trying too hard', and there was even one that Ino said 'could hang with me.'

Lastly, Tsunade showed her an image of a girl with platinum blonde hair on top and black on the bottom, coon-tailed bangs, a septum piercing, snakebites and bright eye makeup the blonde teen recoiled.

"Listen, if you wanted me to go bulimic, that's one way to do it." she gagged.

The therapist furrowed her eyebrows. "Really? Now, just what's wrong with her?"

"You're not serious."

"Don't you think that perhaps," Tsunade said, putting the photos down and crossing her legs, "you're putting too much emphasis on what's on the outside?"

"Can I just go?" Ino whined. "I'm tired of looking at pictures of ugly people. It sucks!"

Gently, Tsunade said, "Our time is almost up. I'm very glad you're being so candid today."

Internally, Ino prided herself on having her foot planted rather firmly on the bitch brake the entire session. She must've exhausted Dr. Senju with her attitude by now. "Yeah, always glad to do my part."

"All right, Ino. You may go now." dismissed Tsunade, her face appearing as if she was thinking about something. "Oh, and Ino?" she added, "Sleep well."

"It's barely nine. You dragged me out of bed on a weekend and you want me to sleep well?"

"Yes, rest is very important for all ages."

"Is that a premade line they give you in your crazy books?"

"Monday." the doctor said. "Right after school."

* * *

On Monday morning, Ino woke up bright and early like she usually did, getting out of bed and turning on the shower to a comfortable heat. Fifteen minutes and a deep-conditioning later, she was blow drying her hair when she stopped suddenly. Right there, at the layer jut below her chin that brought attention to her perfect lips, was a series of brown streaks.

Coon tails.

"Mom!" she called. "Mom! _MOM!"_

"What on earth, Ino?" Shareta Yamanaka rushed up the stairs. "I'm running late; I should've been at work twenty minutes ago."

"Mom, look!" Ino showed her the brown streaked hair. "Look at this!"

She took the hair in her hand. "Why would you ever put brown stripes in your gorgeous blonde hair?" she asked.

"That's the thing**—**I didn't! How could my hair just do this!?"

"I don't know, sweetheart. Maybe the peroxide in your color had a reaction to some product or something; maybe that new conditioner you've been using. Anyways, I'm sorry, but I have to run. Wear a hat or something."

After she left, Ino tried to wash the God-awful streaks in the sink, without any luck. Since her mother had been no help, she went looking for Yori, but found that the housekeeper went grocery shopping.

Determined to not let this get the best of her, Ino just decided to work it. However, she made a mental note that her hairstylist's stack would blow. A trim every six weeks, deep-deep-conditioning every twelve, and three week, seventy-five dollar platinum touch ups and this was the thanks she got? Hell no. Besides, maybe her mom was right, and it was just some reaction to the peroxide. The only weird thing was that her natural hair wasn't even brown, but strawberry blonde.

High fashion was Ino's style. She didn't need to rely on blatlant brand names to make her seem stylish; she modeled her fashion after things she saw on the runway, the stars, even old Hollywood movies. She lived for Glamour Magazine, and stacks of fashion magazines sat in her closet. The best thing about Ino's look was that she could change it in a snap. Some days were vintage, others were edgy, and some days she looked like she should be the designer.

Today, though, she was feeling a little Lena Dunham. Ino slipped into a navy blue dress just like the one from tumblr, strapped in her black heels and threw on a leather jacket. Effortless. Okay, so maybe it didn't work with the coontail, but she could always hide it. Quickly as she could, Ino cornrowed the hair on her left side to just behind her ear, Kendall-Jenner-style. You could still see some brown here and there, but it was unnoticeable at a glance.

She applied some smoky eyeshadow and black liner, keeping her lips a nice pink. Dangly chain earrings, a silver cuff bracelet and silver ring on her thumb completed her whole ensemble. Ino admired herself in the mirror, half-smirking and half-pouting. School, here she comes.

* * *

"Uh, Ino? What's the deal with the uh," Ino's BFF, Karin Kobayashi gestured to the random brown spots in her cornrows. "you know, thing?"

Ino shrugged. "Just felt like trying something new." Just because Karin was her best friend, didn't mean Ino had to tell her everything. It was better to make it seem like an on purpose things than accident, because if she told Karin that and Karin told the other cheerleaders, her coontail would be a joke and everyone would take her less seriously. It was better to operate from a position of strength.

"So you just did random streaks? Like, raccoon-tail style? Nice! So cutting edge!" Karin chirped.

Ino had no doubt that by lunch, her stripes would be the talk of the school, and everyone would try to think up ways to get some as well, without it looking like they'd copied her.

"Come on." Ino said. "I have to drop off this costume thing Yori made for the play."

"Play?"

"Uh, yeah. The one I got the lead in? Last month?"

"Oh!" said Karin. "But, you never go to rehearsals or anything."

"I do." Ino commented, a little quietly. "Sometimes."

"So who do play?"

"I don't know, some girl. Aki Naka-something."

"She hot?"

"Duh."

The very idea. Since when was there a time Ino Yamanaka wasn't hot?

* * *

There was just something about Gina Takamori that didn't add up to Ino. A relatively small girl who didn't seem to understand the importance of eyeliner and a good layering, Gina accepted everything with a smile, even the most insignificant of roles in plays. Ino was rather surprised in fact, when she'd auditioned against her for the lead. Naturally though, she got the lead, and Gina was lucky to be her understudy.

She was backstage when Ino and Karin arrived. "Hi there." she said, with no response. When Ino took out the costume from he garment bag and laid it out in front of her on the piano, the silvery-haired girl gasped.

"Oh, Ino! This costume is absolutely perfect! The play is going to be just beautiful, and Aki really is a great part." she marveled.

"Well, don't get any ideas." Ino scoffed. "I don't plan on breaking an arm or leg or whatever."

Gina laughed good-naturedly. "The saying 'break a leg' is like telling someone 'good luck'." she informed. "So in that case, I do hope you break a leg!" she smiled.

"Is that a threat?" Ino glared at Gina, taking a step towards her.

The girl's charcoal eyes widened. "No, not at all! That's not what I meant, really."

"If you're messing with me, kid, I will see to it that you get cut off of this production entirely!"

"But I-I didn't..."

"Leave her alone, won't you?" Sakura Haruno came up, carrying a large bag of paints in one hand and a box of props in her arms.

"You got something to say, raver?" Ino said. Sakura looked away. "That's what I thought. Tch, loser."

Suddenly, Sakura stood right in front of her. Her white tank top exposed thin arms covered with drawings and words in Sharpie, and rubber bracelets were piled on top of one another halfway to her elbow. Her hair made Ino want to cringe. The top layer was a platinum blonde, just like the girl in that picture Tsunade had shown her, and the bottom was neon blue. Two smaller sections came from behind her ears, striped with black. She wore a ton of necklaces, mostly black and silver, matching the silver and purple studded belt that held up her ultra skinny jeans. Her Vans were plain white, also covered in Sharpie.

The only feature about Sakura that Ino might have found pleasant were her green eyes, standing out vibrantly against her black liner smudged with an expertise that Ino somewhat envied. Her nose and lip ring were green as well, and when she stood right in front of Ino, the blonde found it almost intimidating. Sakura had never made eye contact with her before.

"I do have something to say. Lay. Off. " growled the scenester. "First of all, you're too stupid to realize Gina was trying to be nice. Second, the fact that she's being so nice is a huge gesture on her part, because everyone knows she's the one who actually deserves the part."

"Excuse me?" Ino said.

"It's obvious that the only reason they cast you as Aki Nakahara is because your daddy made a huge donation that ended up in the auditorium being named after your dead grandpa." Sakura yelled. "You can't act your way out of a grocery bag, you never even show up at rehearsals, and it's not like you actually care about this play anyway, so _stop giving Gina a hard time_!"

Gina, Karin and Ino stood in such a stunned silence, the blonde couldn't even compose herself enough to respond.

Quickly, Karin grabbed Ino's arm to drag her away. "Let's go, Ino." Before leaving, she turned to Sakura. "Why don't you go listen to My Chemical Romance or do whatever it is freaks like you do?"

The two girs linked arms in the hallway. They continued to talk about the previous debacle when Ino's boyfriend, Kiba Inuzuka, appeared and began walking with them. He slung an arm around Ino's shoulders.

"Hey, babe." he said, leaning in close.

The blonde shrugged him off. "Not now, Kiba."

Even though Kiba was good-looking and considered the ultimate catch at Konoha High, there was something about him that mildly repulsed Ino. Maybe it was the man-jewelry he wore—bracelet, earrings, necklace—it kind of struck her as effeminate. He could at least lose the bracelet. The necklace wouldn't hurt either. Come to think of it, Ino wasn't too big on guys with earrings either.

"What's up?"

"Ino's just been through some major drama, Kiba." said Karin, flipping her bright red hair. Naturally, it was the soft carroty-orange most people had, but she'd taken it a step further, going full out red, not something everybody could pull off. Her haircut, Ino had to admit, was pretty edgy—short and layered on the left, long and straight and even on the right. The blonde remembered that day, when both girls had been flipping through some hair magazines, looking for some kind of dramatic change, and Karin had seen it on page 78 of _Cutting Edge. _Not three hours later, they were at Lena's, the high end salon, and off came Karin's waist length carrot locks. "Some raver-freak ha the nerve to tell her off in the auditorium and say she didn't deserve the part."

"Part?" asked Kiba.

"Yeah, from the school play? Our girl here is the lead."

"E-excuse m-me." Hinata Hyuuga edged past them, smiling gently at Ino as she did so. When she was a few feet away, Kiba mooed. Loudly. Ino, however, was too preoccupied in her own thoughts to even giggle.

"Hey," Karin nudged Ino. "have you handled that thing that prevents you from getting expelled?" the redhead adjusted her slim black-framed glasses. She would've used contacts, but she was so blind the damn things suffocated her eyeballs.

"Huh? Oh, yeah." lied the blonde, cracking her fingers. "Just doing some lame-ass community service stuff."

"That's my girl! No one's ever gonna break you, Ino."

Ino pulled her hands into fists. "Ugh!" she exclaimed. "I never wanna see that stupid colorful-ass freak again!"

"That's kinda hard, babe." Kiba said. "She's in your next class. You know, though, maybe that's a good thing."

"Kiba's right. You can't let her know you're rattled. Put her back in her place; better sooner than later."

"You know what, Karin?" said Ino, putting her hands on her narrow hips. "You're right. I need to remind Sakura Haruno just who is in charge here."

* * *

notes**—Totally annihilated a bag of Takis while writing this ^-^ I'm pretty sure this is late, but whatever :P Thank you guys again for favoriting and reviewing, it means a lot :D I really hoped you like reading this, and don't forget to review!**

**Love you guys!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Miles**

summary—**I just need some time to figure out my life.**

disclaimer—**Not mine.**

first version;** unedited.**

**.**

notes—**Hello! I'm sorry for not updating in over a month, that's my bad :P Hopefully you're still into this story, so enjoy!**

* * *

During all of first period English, Ino texted Karin. They both sat way in the back of the room, and even though their desks were supposed to turn the opposite way, the girls had flipped them around.

_Lame__, _typed out the blonde on her iPhone, barely even having to look at the screen. She made sure to try and look as interested as possible in the weird poem Kurenai-sensei was reading out loud. Bits and pieces of it entered her ears, and she made sure to remember them in case she got called on or something.

_This guy obviously had way too much free time__,_ Karin replied, after the teacher had asked about their thoughts behind the poem. Ino snickered.

"What about you, Ino?" she asked. "Any thoughts?"

The blonde shook her head. "Not really. Thanks for the opportunity, though." she said with mock enthusiasm, and the class giggled.

"But you seem so amused by this piece. Surely you must have something to say?"

_Come on, lady. You are seriously asking for it. _thought Ino, before discreetly rolling her eyes. "Actually, Kurenai-sensei, I was wondering what kind of grass this guy was so into." the class laughed outright. "'Cause I'd like some."

Any other teacher would've been furious at Ino's snarky remark. Kurenai-sensei was even a new teacher, fresh out of school, but she didn't lose her composure. Instead, she raised one of her thin black eyebrows and pretended Ino hadn't just said what she said.

"Sakura, how do you feel about this poem?"

Karin caught Ino's eye, rolling her own crimson ones.

The pinkette's green eyes widened under her choppy, multicolored fringe, and she picked at the frayed edges of the hole in her jeans, right at the knee. "Um, the writer was trying to convey the relationship between everything in the world, how...how everything's interconnected in the universe."

"Thank you, Sakura." sighed Kurenai-sensei. "It's such a relief to know that some of you have some worthwhile insights to share."

_What a kiss-ass._ Karin texted. Ino replied with a, _Srsly._

The bell rang, and Kurenai-sensei dismissed the class. The teacher stepped out of the classroom, by the door to welcome any students coming in for second period.

As Sakura slung her bright pink backpack over her shoulder, ready to leave, Ino and Karin stepped in front of her.

"You better listen up, girlie." Ino said. "Talk to me the same way you did earlier this morning, and trust me when I say you will regret it."

Sakura rolled her eyes. "Um, can you move? I need to get to my next class."

"What's the matter?" Karin blocked her as the pinkette tried to maneuver around them. "Not so big and bad now, huh?"

Sakura's petite frame closed in on both girls. "Are you trying to intimidate me? Because I'm not all that scared of a _tampon," _she hissed at Karin. "Or you, Ino-pig. Don't think you're gonna scare me off the same way you did those other girls. You really think I'll run away from KA just because you exclude me from the social scene like a bunch of third-graders and a kickball game? No. But please, go ahead and give me a reason to pick up that _fuck _I just dropped."

The low growl of her voice, or the flare in her eyes caused Ino and Karin to take a step back. Sakura brushed past, her blue and platinum hair flipping behind her.

"Don't think I'm scared of you!" Ino called after her. "Mouth off to me again, and just wait to see what happens!"

As Ino watched Sakura leave, she shivered. Never again did she want to be that close to her.

* * *

Third period Physics was kind of a relief to Ino; an AP class her father had bribed her with a Fendi bag to take, and where there wasn't anyone important there to worry about. It was the one class she could relax in, no strings attached.

"Hello, beautiful." chirped Sai, her lab partner. He had one of those adorable smiles on his face that only Ino got.

Ino sighed. "Hello, Sai. What's with the new nickname?" Sai was homeschooled for much of his life, and was therefore a little socially awkward. Not painfully so, but he sometimes didn't use contractions and opted for handshakes instead of the usual fist bump-high five thing everyone else used.

"I heard nicknames are based upon features of the person they are used on, so I decided 'beautiful' was suitable one for you."

In all honesty, Ino was touched by this remark. Sai was kind of bad at giving compliments, and hardly did it anyways, so she knew this was a rare occurrence.

Asuma-sensei gave them a list of problems to solve, and the two began to diligently work on them. Halfway through problem 3, Tenten Liáng—an exchange student from who-knows-where—approached them.

"Excused? What is meaning of word?" she pointed to something written on her paper.

"Round up." answered Sai, making an upward, circular motion with his hand.

"Thank you." replied Tenten, smiling slightly and walking away.

"Ugh, why doesn't she just learn English already?" scoffed Ino.

"Ino, Tenten is absolutely brilliant. She is head and shoulders above anyone else in the class, and her English is very good considering how little time she's spent here." Sai looked at her curiously, like she was the one who didn't understand what he was saying.

"She could at least learn English then, if she's so smart."

"How much Chinese do you speak, Ino?"

Ino justified her lack of knowledge for the language by replying with, "Well, I'm not in China now, am I?"

Sai shook his head.

* * *

After school, Ino was glad she didn't have homework when she flopped into bed. Ko-chan, her tiny brown Cavalier Spaniel, leapt into her lap. Ino scooped him up, planting a kiss on his head and logged on to her Facebook.

As usual, she had the abundance of notifications. The blonde scrolled through them, occasionally clicking on them to see what status she'd been mentioned in, or what new pics had been posted.

She spent a few hours doing that, then checked her Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr. All were in order, and when Ino grew bored of the Internet, she turned on her TV.

"Miss Ino?" Yori appeared in the doorway. She was so nice, always making sure no one in the Yamanaka family was missing anything. "Your dinner is ready. Would you like me to bring it up for you?"

"No." said Ino. "Wrap it up—I'll eat it later."

The brunette nodded, and went back downstairs.

Halfway through _Teen Wolf, _Ino got a headache. At first, she attributed it to the cornrows on the side of her head, and gently took them out. She brushed her long blonde hair to a satiny finish, then pulled it into a loose bun. The throbbing in her head continued, pulsating closely to what felt like her ear.

One advil and some orange juice later, the calling of nine hundred thread count sheets and a fluffy pillow became too much for Ino, so she turned off the television and crawled into bed with Ko-chan. It was surprising to the teen just how exceedingly tired she was, and remembered something Tsunade had told her about the importance of sleep to adolescents.

Maybe that was the problem.

* * *

To her dismay, when Ino awoke Ko-chan was nowhere to be found. Not to mention the fact that she hadn't woken up to the wonderful chiming of her alarm, but to the sound of...giggling?

The blonde cracked open an eye, only to be met with the faces of multiple people, and not the pale pink paint on her walls. Just what were all these people doing in her house? Instantly, Ino sat up, about to demand they all leave her room, but then she realized she wasn't in her room at all. In fact, it was a classroom.

"Rise and shine." said the teacher, some young-ish guy with crazy silver hair and a mask. He was looking at her lazily, holding an orange book in his hand.

The class giggled again, and Ino blushed. "I, um...I think I'm in the wrong class."

"Sakura Haruno, it's almost the beginning of fourth quarter. I have had you in third period Biology since August thirtieth, trust me when I say you're in the right class."

Okay, this guy had to be on something for him to think she was Sakura. But when she looked down at her legs, she didn't recognize them. Shiny black Doc Martens covered her feet, and Ino touched one just to make sure they were legit. Since when did she write all over her hands? And wear red nail polish with white polka dots all over it?

Ino's blue eyes traveled up her legs, and found herself to be wearing leggings, and a big, fleecy gray shirt with a black anchor on it. Her hands were covered in silver rings, and her head felt kind of...heavy. She felt a bandanna tied around her head, and her long hair was in a ponytail.

Even her figure felt unfamiliar. Ino felt herself having difficulty putting her head at the level it was normally at, and her arms were muscular. The fingers were shorter, her hands chapped in comparison to Ino's usually perfectly moisturized ones. She had narrow hips, giving her a much more up-and-down figure. The thing was, Ino wasn't and up-and-down girl; she was curvy. From the extra cushioning Ino felt against the chair, she must have had more butt than she was used to.

The blonde stood up so quickly her desk moved forward. She ran for the door.

"Haruno, where are you going?" the teacher asked.

Ino was sure her heart was going to beat out of her chest. She replied with "Bathroom," while running out of the classroom.

Thank God the bathroom was down the hall. Ino nearly pushed the door off it's hinges in her scramble to get inside. Once in the bathroom, she dashed for the mirror.

Sure enough, the hair she was combing through was not hers. It was blue and blonde and striped with black.

The eyes looking back at Ino were not hers. They were green and heavily lined.

The clothes she was wearing were not hers. Indie scene was so _not _her style.

The face in the mirror was not hers.

It was Sakura Haruno's.

* * *

notes—**Cut! ^-^ Since**_** rain dance **_**is gonna be on hold, this will be updated much more often, for all of you that faved and followed. Thank you guys for your nice reviews, I hope to see more!**

**Love & Happy New Year!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Miles**

summary—**I just need some time to figure out my life.**

disclaimer—**No!**

first version; **unedited.**

**.**

notes—**Here's to the end of winter break. :|.**

* * *

Holy. Shit.

Ino felt down the sides of (not) her body, noting the lack of flesh in rather necessary places. Sakura was probably a zero, B-cup, and a butt girl. Ino was at least a two, thirty-six C, and her butt wasn't the most amazing. It wasn't _nonexistant_, but it sure wasn't J-Lo's.

She turned on the sink, waiting for the water to get cold enough before splashing a nice amount on her face. If this was a dream, she needed to wake up—fast. When there wasn't any sudden flash back to her comfy bed, Ino hid out in a stall. The bell rung, students pouring out into the hallways like normal, and after five minutes, the tardy bell rung as well.

Deciding she was afraid of being alone, Ino wandered back into the hallway. The only other person there was a coach, looking plenty normal, which was something of a relief to Ino. She was just about to ask him for help when he turned to her and said, "Get to class, Haruno."

"Wait," Ino said. "I...I'm _not _Sakura Haruno."

The coach rolled his eyes. "The way you and your friends dress, it's easy to tell you apart from each other and the rest of the student body. Now get to class." he pulled out his radio, asking the office what Sakura's next class was supposed to be.

Ino was escorted to a classroom, where she stood awkwardly in the doorway. The teacher told her to sit down, and the blonde unsurely made her way to the only empty seat in the class. She sat and stared, having no backpack or notebooks while everyone else worked silently on an in-class assignment.

"Sakura?" the teacher asked. He had brown hair in a ponytail, with some kind of scar running across his nose. "Where are your things?"

"I...um, I don't know."

"This isn't like you." he remarked, writing down a hall pass. The yellow piece of paper was torn out, and handed to Ino. "Go get your things."

"Y-yes, sensei."

He smiled. "Remember, I told my class to call me Iruka, you included."

Ino nodded, walking out of the class. She ambled around the halls, wondering just where Sakura's locker was. She went to the office for help.

The secretary looked up from her computer. "Hello, how can I help you?"

"Can you tell me where S—my locker is?" Ino bit Sakura's lip.

The secretary rolled her eyes, typing away at the keyboard. "It's second semester and you don't know where your locker is?"

"Oh, I know where it is," Ino laughed nervously, waving it off with her hand. "I just...need my combination."

"Right." the older woman's nails clicked away on the computer. "Name, please?"

"Sakura Haruno."

"Okay. Locker D seventy-seven, combination one, sixteen, twenty-four." she told Ino, jotting it down on a piece of paper to hand her.

The teen went to where she knew the D lockers were, took out Sakura's notebook and shut the thing before the bell rang. It had taken so much time to get the locker number and combo that she had missed the class she was supposed to get the notebook for.

Someone tapped her shoulder. The blonde jumped a little, and saw Shizune, the school guidance counselor.

"Don't forget our appointment this period." she chirped.

"A-appointment?"

The brunette woman nodded. "I can't believe it's been a month already! I'm going to get some coffee, and then I'll see you in my office in five, alright?"

_Yay, _Ino thought. _Another __counselor._

* * *

Okay, if Ino was going to walk around as someone else, she could at least do it while looking good. She walked right back into the bathroom, washed every bit of Sakura's ridiculous liner off, and applied some shimmery brown eyeshadow that came from a compact she'd taken out of her own locker.

The blonde took the red bandanna out of her hair, instead pulling all of Sakura's hair (choppy, eye-obscuring bangs included) into a ballerina bun. Her forehead was kind of wide, but she looked prettier when you could see her eyes, rather than hiding behind all that hair like some kind of sheepdog. Good thing Ino had a purple scarf in her locker as well, because she wrapped it around Sakura's thin neck, creating the perfect accent to her gray-scale outfit.

As she sat in Shizune's office, Ino tried to wrap her head around what was going on. So far, she only remembered going to sleep in her _own _bed, then waking up in a class, as Sakura Haruno. Unfortunately, this was not a dream, which ed to some questions. If Ino was Sakura, then where was real Ino's body? Where was subconscious Sakura? Was she in Ino's body? Did she know this was going on? Or was she still herself, but in a different place?

Shizune flopped down into a chair. "So, how's your progress Sakura?"

"Fine?" Ino offered.

"Just fine?" Shizune's dark eyes regarded Ino curiously. "What have you done since our last session?" she asked.

"Uh...homework?"

"I'm glad to see you've pulled your hair away from your face and ears today, Sakura. Come closer." Shizune waved her nearer, and she inspected Sakura's ears and face. Her thin eyebrows rose as she came across something in Sakura's ear.

"A tragus _and _stretching? My, Sakura, you seem to be pushing it lately. Any fights you have been involved in lately?"

Ino's mouth dropped open. A tragus piercing? As in, that little tiny thing that sticks out in front of your ear canal? Talk about painful. And never, in a million years, would Ino _dream _about stretching her ear lobes. That was just gross. And then, as it turned out, Sakura was a fighter. Man, Ino knew she was weird, but apparently messed up too.

"I don't think so." the teen answered.

"I understand there was a confrontation between you and Ino Yamanaka the other day."

"Who told you that?"

"We don't have to worry about that now. What's important is that you stood up not only for yourself, but for someone else. I also heard that you used your words, and not your fists, to solve this problem. That's a very big step for you."

"Uh...I guess." Ino said.

The dark-haired woman placed her hand on Ino's knee comfortingly. "Sakura, it's perfectly okay for adolescents to crave attention, and I understand that that is very difficult for you to get with your family situation. The methods you have used in the past weren't the best, and it's good progress to see you begin to grow out of them, although I am concerned about your piercings."

Hm. So _that's _why Sakura looked the way she did; it was ploy for attention. What, mommy and daddy were too busy with what Ino was sure were older, more successful siblings to pay attention to poor Sakura? Typical.

"Remember, Sakura Haruno is the only one who can control Sakura Haruno, and it's up to her to make the right decisions, yes?"

Ino nodded in response. Shizune checked the clock hanging above the door to her office.

"Well, it's almost time for lunch, so I will be seeing you next month, okay Sakura? I am very pleased with your progress so far, although you weren't all too talkative. Why would that be, if you could tell me before you leave." the brunette inquired.

All Ino could do was shrug. Maybe the guidance counselor would take as a sign that she just wasn't feeling chatty today.

Shizune smiled. "All right then, have a good day!" she opened the door for Ino, and the blonde rushed out to the cafeteria. She hoped Sakura at least had some money in her account, Ino was starving.

After getting her tray of fries (Sakura was skinny enough to take the salt) and a strawberry smoothie, Ino looked around to where Sakura might sit. A smattering of black and neon hair at a table near some windows caught her eye. She made her way over there, and began to eat right after setting down her tray. None of the others seemed to pay attention to her anyhow, so hopefully she wouldn't have to worry about playing Saki during lunch.

One guy with straight white hair looked at her. "Who are—oh shit! It's Sakura. Damn, didn't recognize you w'all that prep makeup on ya'." he said, his lips pulling back in a smile.

"Oooh, someone's going Barbie!" remarked another guy, his face striped with purple.

A blonde girl sitting to the left of Ino nudged her. "You've got L'Oreal, 'cause you're worth it!" she winked one of her blue-green eyes.

Ino rolled her eyes. "Get bent," she muttered, digging back into her fries.

"What?" white-haired guy held up his hands. "You're the one trying it out."

Ino was definitely in no mood to handle this right now.

"So, in trying to apparently not conform, I still have to conform to you guys?" she pointed to them with one of her fries. "I can't look like them," she gestured to the popular table (_her_ table) on the other side of the caf. "But I still have to look like you. Is that how your little 'individuality' scheme works? Conforming to the non-conformity?"

"God, Saks, you on the rag or somethin'?" he said.

"Lay off, Suigetsu." a redhead sitting a little bit separately from the others spoke. His eyes were a light sea-foam green and heavily lined, just like Sakura's had been. "Sakura's just saying what's up."

"Gaara's right." the blonde girl sipped her Coke. Her hand had _Temari _scrawled on it with green Sharpie. "Hey, anyone seen Juugo today?"

Suigetsu shook his head. "He told me he wasn't feeling good today and was gonna stay home. Good thing he didn't come, 'cause when he ain't in top condition, guy turns into a freakin' beast. Real scary shit, amirite?"

Everyone at the table laughed.

"Speaking of homes," the one with purple on his face said. "You guys wanna come over tonight? My mom finally lightened up and got Netflix."

"Ooh," the one Ino decided to call Temari replied. "Tell mom that I won't be home right after school today. Photography Club meets today."

"Okay, what about you Sakura?"

"Idiot, Saks works today, don'tcha remember?" Suigetsu slapped him on the arm.

Seriously? In addition to terrible hair, makeup, piercings and family problems, Sakura Haruno also seemed to have a job.

Just what Ino needed.

* * *

notes—**Okay, there goes chapter 4 of Miles! Thank you guys for reviewing and favoriting/following last chapter, I really hope to see more of those this time around! Also, if y'all could please vote on my poll, that would be awesome :)**

**Thanks again! Love!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Miles**

summary**—****I just need some time to figure out my life.**

disclaimer**—****Nope.**

**.**

notes**—****Heeeyyy, long time no see 0_0**

* * *

At the end of the day, Ino was very disappointed to find no car keys of any type in Sakura's locker. She really didn't want to walk anywhere, much less to a house that wasn't even hers. Besides, what kind of person did that, be seventeen and have no car? Can someone say, hella stupid?

The blonde shut the locker door with a huff, dreading having to ask someone what Sakura's address was. She took the bright pink backpack that was on the floor and shoved a couple of thick textbooks into it. The hall was mostly empty, which made for an undisturbed trek out the door, except for Suigetsu who was walking towards her.

"Are you ready?"

Ino raised an eyebrow. "For what?"

Suigetsu looked at her like she just said the sky was yellow. "For me to take ya' home, like I've done every day since October?" he pulled some keys from the pocket of his white jeans.

"Oh, yeah! Yeah, that! Okay," Ino pretended like she knew what he was talking about the whole time, internally grateful she wouldn't have to wander around aimlessly looking for Sakura's house.

They walked out to the parking lot, where stragglers were getting into their old hand-me-down cars and shiny sweet sixteen gifts. On the far side, however, was a lone white Mercedes, striped with black down the hood. Ino admired it, expecting Suigetsu to lead her into some ugly early-2000s Dodge or something, but he instead walked right past them, to the far side of the lot where the Mercedes was.

With one click of the remote attached to his key ring, the doors slid open with a soft hiss. Suigetsu got in on the driver's side, already sticking the key into the ignition while Ino gaped.

"Oh no, don't get in or anything," Suigetsu rolled his eyes as the teen scrambled to get in and pull the door down. "It's like you've never seen Baby or somethin'."

Ino just smiled out of the corner of her mouth, keeping silent on the rest of the way to Sakura's.

* * *

He dropped her off in front of a typical-looking upper-middle class house. It was painted light yellow, had large windows on either side, and a brown door flanked by white columns. Ino got Sakura's backpack, pushed the door up and said bye to Suigetsu.

A Suburban sat in the driveway, and there seemed to be movement inside,, which meant, to Ino's pleasure, that the front door was unlocked. She pushed stray hairs off her forehead, rolled her shoulders back, and took a deep breath before opening the door.

She walked into chaos.

Blonde and pink-haired children ran amok, throwing things, chasing after one another, screaming. Six pairs of shoes were thrown next to the door, backpacks and coats hung on pegs above them. Judging from the brands, there appeared to be three pairs of boy's shoes and three pairs of girl's shoes.

"Oof!" someone small crashed into Ino's (Sakura's?) legs, causing Ino to stumble slightly. "What the…?"

A little girl, around five, and with long, bubblegum-pink locks, looked up. "Sorry, Sakura." she chirped, unwrapping herself and running off again.

"Saku_ra!_" came a yell from upstairs, When there wasn't an answer, the sound of footsteps thundered down the stairs, belonging to a boy with hair the lightest pink Ino had ever seen, and angry green eyes. He stomped up to her, mouth set into a firm line.

"What the hell did you do with my Playstation?!" he cried.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about," said Ino, holding up her hands in defense. She wasn't, y'know, lying, because she honestly had no idea what Haruno had done with her brother's Playstation.

"Don't frickin' lie to me, Sakura! Dad said he didn't do anything, so it has to be you!"

What, mom wasn't around to mess with her kid's things?

"I said I don't know!"

The younger teen opened his mouth to argue again, when someone else called Sakura's name. Ino turned around, and a man appeared in the doorway leading to what she assumed was the kitchen, two or three children latched to his arms and legs. He was tall, with reddish-pink hair, and dark crescents under his brown eyes. The man wore business clothes, but the tie was coming loose, and his shirt was wrinkled and smudged.

"Sakura dear, I know you have to be at work soon, but would you please get started on the cleaning the kitchen? I have some papers to work on and**—**Nina, don't pinch Hajime!" Two more children once again ran through the living room, shooting each other with water guns. "Hoshi, Tsuki, please! Not in the house!"

Ino was absolutely appalled at the amount of rambunctious activity going on in this house. With her family, it was always quiet, organized and serious. Here, the atmosphere was very energetic, wild and even a bit tense. Plus, the dad seemed to be the one dealing with the kids**—**where was Sakura's mother? Could it be she was outside or having some time to herself? Ino knew she would take time off if she ever had this many kids.

"Um," Ino looked at the floor. "I have a lot of homework; can't Mom do it?"

The living room was silent. The two children on Sakura's father's legs had stopped giggling, the brother gritted his jaw, and the father suddenly looked very sad.

"That's sick, Sakura. You know Mom can't do anything anymore." he shook his head, once again stomping, but this time up the stairs.

"Now, Daisuke, I'm sure Sakura is just frazzled**—**"

The door slammed.

Ino felt shameful. She knew she'd said the wrong thing, and angered some people she didn't even know. "I… I'm really sorry…"

The father smiled sadly. "It's alright. I know it's been a long time, honey, and we forget. Daisuke will get over it, but I know your mother's death affected him greatly." he sighed. "They were very close."

The teen nodded, looking down once again at the floor as she hung up the backpack and walked to the kitchen. There was a mess, with plates scattered about, food left out on the counter, and the sink absolutely cluttered. Never in her life had Ino ever washed anything, and she didn't plan on starting now.

What a life.

About an hour after disdainfully washing dishes and somehow trying to fit large Pyrex dishes into the fridge, Ino trudged up the stairs, to Sakura's room. Thank goodness it was marked with a sign that said 'Sakura' in bright pink letters, or else Ino might've walked in on someone.

To her surprise, it was very nice and clean. The walls were a light gray, with light yellow curtains and furniture. It looked like a typical teenager's room, as opposed to the ridiculous Hot Topic posters and mismatched furniture Ino always assumed was in here. The blonde collapsed on the plush queen bed for what seemed like only a second before there was a knock on her door.

"Uh… come in," she said.

"Sakura, honey, it's time for you to go to work." Sakura's father pushed the door open a crack, peeking his head in.

Ino sprang up, eyes wide in surprise. Of course Sakura had a job**—**she already had low social status and a dysfunctional family.

"What?"

"It's time for work, I'll be waiting for you in the car."

Ino sighed deeply, unwillingly leaving the bed and walking to Sakura's (teeny) closet. She noticed a hanger loaded with more than just a shirt. There seemed to be a white dress shirt, gray vest, black skirt, and a red tie draped over the top. The teen recognized that uniform; Sakura worked at Café Délicieux, a nice-ish French restaurant in the downtown.

_How'd she get a job like that? _Ino wondered. _She sure doesn't look like the type._

The teen put on the uniform, hating how it fit her a little too tightly for her liking, but nonetheless making sure it looked good.

* * *

That was it. Ino hated working.

Not only did she seem to be the butt of every joke the kitchen staff made, but she actually had to clean up puke, mop a bathroom, and somehow managed to get orange almond bisque spilled all over her. The salary had to be really good, if Sakura actually stayed.

However, when she walked out the back door to somehow return to her own house, Sakura's dad was already waiting with the car, reading a book. The simple gesture made Ino suddenly feel a little warm inside, although she couldn't quite name what it was.

The entire car ride, they were quiet, but not in an awkward manner; it was surprisingly comfortable. Ino rested her arm on the side of the door, cheek in hand while she stared ta the lighted-up city. It had to be at least ten o'clock, and she didn't do a lick of homework. Not like it was her problem, anyway.

As soon as the Suburban pulled up into the driveway, Ino got out, shutting the door firmly behind her and flying through the front door. The house was dark and silent, and she walked up the stairs as stealthily as she could.

Ino collapsed on the bed, not bothering to even remove her shoes. Her eyes glimpsed the clock, which read 10:28, and then Ino fell into a deep sleep.

* * *

notes**—The reason I haven't updated in a long time is because I get these bouts of writer's block for this story, and it sometimes makes it hard to write something decent :/ That's my bad, you guys. Anyways, thank you very much for reviewing the last few chaps, and even for the new version of **_**rain dance,**_** you have no idea how that brightens up my day :)**

**Thank you for reading, and please review! Hugs!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Miles**

summary**—****I ****just ****need ****some ****time ****to ****figure ****out ****my ****life****.**

disclaimer**—****Nope****.**

**.**

notes**—****So****, ****uh****, ****any ****of ****you ****still ****around****?**

* * *

There was a familiar scent surrounding Ino. Something like coconut, vanilla, and her Can-Can by Paris Hilton fragrance. Her eyes fluttered open, a sigh of relief escaping her lips when she saw the pink paint of her walls. As she sat up in bed, more familiar sensations approached her body**—**the softness of her sheets, the sound of Yori downstairs, the weight on her chest. She put her hands on them, somewhat content.

_Boobs__, __sweet __boobs__. _

"Arf!" Ko-chan jumped on Ino's bed, his brown tail wagging happily as he licked her hand. Instead of pushing him away, Ino accepted it, realizing just how much she missed him.

"Hey baby, hi, hi!" she cooed, ruffling the soft feathery hairs of Ko-chan's ears. "Did you miss me?"

Suddenly, Ino's alarm went off, telling her it was time to start getting ready for school. The blonde groaned, giving her dog a kiss on the head and throwing the covers back. She approached her mirror, swelling with relief at the sight of her blonde hair (_one_color, mind you) brushed into a low ponytail. Ino pulled out the hair tie. The teen flipped her head upside down, creating a braid up the back of her head. The rest of her hair was rolled into a sock bun, and Ino made sure every last strand of hair was in place. She smiled, thankful that, whoever was in control of her body (if that wasn't a dream), had been kind enough to moisturize last night. She grabbed a bright red long sleeved shirt, pulled it over her head, slid into some leggings, and wrapped a lacy white scarf around her neck to finish it off.

As soon as Ino finished getting ready she practically flew down the stairs. Like always, Yori was in the kitchen preparing breakfast: egg-white omelet, turkey bacon, and protein shake. Curvy she might be, but that didn't mean Ino could eat greasy, salty, _cholesterol__-__loaded_food. A figure like hers was earned, not given.

"Good morning Miss Ino. Are you feeling better today?" asked the brunette, sitting down at the table with Ino's plate and her usual cup of coffee.

Ino furrowed her brows. Better? She wasn't feeling bad yesterday-oh. _Oh__. _

"Y-Yeah. I-I-I'm feeling better t-today."

"Are you sure, hon?" Yori lifted a slender brow. "You're looking a bit pale right now, and yesterday you seemed awfully confused. Maybe you've got a fever." she placed her hand on Ino's forehead.

Ino finished eating, and Yori reluctantly declared her healthy enough to attend school. She bid the teen girl good luck like she did every morning as Ino drove away in her powder-blue Prius. The car was indeed a sweet sixteen present, whom she proudly named Baby. This car had taken her to and from school for almost two years now, not once breaking down or making so much as a screech.

Now, on her way to school, something nagged at Ino. Yori said she wasn't looking too good yesterday, but Ino technically didn't come home yesterday. She was at Sakura's. So then, if Ino was Sakura, did that mean Sakura was Ino?

A red light interrupted her thoughts, and Ino slammed the brakes so she wouldn't kill someone. Within her line of sight was KA, the parking lot filling up quickly. Good thing the light only lasted a few seconds, or else the teen might not have gotten a spot.

Because something inside Ino still refused to believe yesterday's incidents actually happened, she decided to try one more thing, just to be sure. The blonde walked to where she remembered Sakura's locker was, and put in the combination. It swung open.

"No way..." Ino said under her breath. Her eyes marveled at the books stacked inside, wondering how they got there.

"What are you doing in my locker." someone said, causing Ino to jump. She turned around, facing Sakura who looked as though encountering Ino was a great displeasure. "W-What?"

"Take it out." demanded the girl, crossing her arms and raising an eyebrow.

"T-take out what?" Ino replied, mentally cursing herself for acting like a quivering bowl of Jell-o in front of someone who was supposed to be her inferior.

"Whatever it is you put in my locker. Shaving cream? A rubber snake? Toilet paper?"

In a panic, Ino said the first thing that popped into her head. "Huh? Uh, no, I didn't p-put anything in there. I-I thought it was my... friend's locker!"

"And you somehow got the combination right?"

That left Ino at a loss for words. Exactly how was she supposed to explain that she ended up in Sakura's body when she didn't know herself? What would she say? 'Hey, by the way, thanks for lending me your body yesterday, your life kind of sucks'?

Instead of right-out explaining, Ino decided to... _ease _into it.

"Um, Sakura, did you feel okay...yesterday?" she asked nervously, hopping from one foot to the other.

Sakura looked shocked. Since when did preppy _bitch _Ino care about anything except her outfit? "I, was, uh, fine, I guess. Except, I think I seriously tuned out in like, third peri**—**I mean, yeah, I was fine. Listen, I don't know what weird games you're playing, but I think it would be best if you left." Sakura said after recovering herself. She almost told Ino, a notorious gossip, about her weird feeling yesterday, which would undoubtedly be spread all over the school along the lines of "I heard she felt so sick because she's _pregnant_".

She walked away, leaving Ino slightly stunned. She shuddered slightly, before walking away herself.

* * *

Two days later, Ino had successfully convinced herself that the Sakura Incident was, in fact, a dream. The thing with the combination was just a coincidence, some weird kind of deja vu, that's all. She woke up Friday with a can-do attitude and a daring feeling. She pulled open her dresser drawer, rummaging around until she found the very clothing item she had in mind: a candy apple-red red romper. She'd bought it last year when her fam went to San Fran for summer vacation, but hadn't actually worn it since.

Today, though, it called to her. It had long sleeves, so it offered more coverage than the usual romper, but there was a pretty low cut to compensate. The shorts reached to _just _below her fingertips so she wouldn't get a write-up at school, and with the exact cross necklace she was looking for, Ino had the perfect outfit for her mood. She pinned her hair up again, messily this time because Ino hated repeating hairstyles in the same week.

She went to school with a smile on her face.

* * *

By second period, that smile was long gone. Ino felt bloated and tired, uncharacteristically so. The elastic band around the waist of the romper stretched out a bit more than it usually did, and she suddenly had a little trouble catching her breath.

Her focus was elsewhere; certainly not on the subject she was supposed to be learning. Relief washed over her when the dismissal bell rang, because that meant that only an hour until lunch.

"You should watch your sodium intake," Karin told her when they walked out of second period. "You're looking seriously bloated."

"I know!" replied the blonde, grimacing. "Prolly PMS, though."

It had to be, because, in addition to feeling bloated, Ino just didn't feel like herself. And honestly? It was kind of scary.

For the rest of the day, Ino chewed on her lip until it was red and raw, but it even then kept doing it. It was a nervous tendency she developed, along with tapping her foot and twisting her hair. She still felt extremely uncomfortable in her own skin, like she was swimming in it or stuck in a box stuffed with cotton.

Physics finally came, and the blonde decided to actually listen to what Asuma-sensei was saying, for once. They had started the chapter in their book about sound waves. The teacher drew some complicated-looking diagrams and a few numbers that made absolutely no sense to Ino. She took the notes as usual, but didn't comprehend any of the material. When he assigned some reading, she felt completely lost. The ring on her finger felt somewhat tight, and Ino's back hurt. Coupled with the shortness of breath, she felt like she might just pass out.

"Hey Sai," she said, turning to her dark-haired lab partner. "Do you mind explaining this to me?" She cocked her head to the side flirtatiously.

"You must be quite dim if you didn't learn anything after what the teacher just explained to us." came the reply. Normally, if anyone else talked to Ino like that, things would not be pretty. But, because it was Sai and Sai didn't really have a super-firm grasp of what was socially okay, she always let it slide. If anything, she found his snarky little remarks amusing.

"I'm not feeling too good today-my focus is absolute shit. Now could you please help me?"

Sai turned towards Ino, eyebrows furrowed. "Are you menstruating, Ino? I heard that a woman's time of the month can severely throw off her performance in life."

The blonde smiled, trying her best to not laugh. "I think so, Sai. By the way, girls usually get a little defensive if you ask them questions like that, so remember that as taboo."

"But why? Isn't it the same as asking if their head hurts?"

"Maybe, but people are weird. _Anyways__, _could you _pretty __please _help me?" Ino found herself pouting. At the slight sting on her lips, she reached into her backpack and pulled out some lip balm. As she applied, Sai began to explain the principles of waves.

"A wave, Ino, is like a disturbance. If I were to hit you, the reason it would make a noise is because I have created a disruption in the environment. Of course, the wave has to travel through a medium**—**in this case your ear."

"Medium?"

"Yes, something to receive the wave, what the particles move through-"

"Can people be mediums for something?" Ino suddenly interrupted.

"Yes. If not, you wouldn't be able to hear anything."

"No, I mean, can someone like... pass through someone? Like-like a wave? An-and then like, I don't know, share atoms?"

Sai looked confused. "I... I don't think so. I mean, from what you're describing, it sounds like something to do with quantum entanglement, which is a very difficult field of science."

Ino perked up at the sound of that. Weird as it was, did that mean there was actually some sort of explanation for what happened? "So, it _can _happen?"

"Well... technically, there is such a thing as teleportation, but the science behind it is highly complicated." Sai replied, frowning.

Ino thought about it for a second. Perhaps if she got Sai to study some of it for her, they could come up with a basic idea of what was going on, although Ino would never let Sai know th entire truth.

"Do you think we could study it after school today?" she asked, cocking her head to the side.

There was a widening of black eyes to accompany Sai's response. "You... You want to meet up with me, after school? I-I thought that was something you only did with others in your social class."

"Nu-uh! I'll meet you in the library, once I'm done with cheer, 'kay?"

"Okay."

* * *

Ino's thighs touched.

They touched.

They _touched__._

Ino's thighs didn't touch.

As previously stated, Ino had curves, but that didn't mean she had flab. Her legs were quite possibly one of her best assets, and they usually had about a half inch of space in between her thighs.

Not only that, but during all of cheer, she felt herself slow down gradually, having difficulty breathing again and being unable to perform her usually flawless flips. It felt like there was so much more to propel over her head**—**more legs, more thighs, more everything. She hoped no one noticed until she had to do a back handspring, when, instead of landing gracefully on her feet, she totally landed on her back.

"Hey, Ino?"

"Yeah, Karin?"

"What is with you today?" the redhead cocked an eyebrow. "I mean, you're kind of sucking, and I just wanted to know if you're doing okay."

"I'm not feeling great," Ino said absentmindedly. "I think... I think I'm gonna head out early today, girls." Feeling dizzy, she put a hand on her forehead to check for warmth, and noticed just how quickly it had expanded. That ring she had on her finger? It looked like it could easily pop off at any second. Her fingers were swollen, dimpled at the joints. She curled her hands into fists, ducking her head and rushing into the locker room.

Without bothering to change, Ino threw her backpack over her shoulder, deciding to drive home since school was pretty much over anyways. She drove much more quickly than normal, desperate to get home and take something for this _raging __headache _she had.

Within seconds of arriving home, Ino threw down her keys, and collapsed, exhausted, on the couch.

* * *

When she woke up again, she found herself sitting on the concrete benches of the locker room. Upon trying to stand, Ino felt very... heavy.

_Oh__, __no__._

Once again her fingers were swollen. She held them to her face, noting the extra flesh on her cheeks. When she looked down, a huge coat blocked the way of seeing her toes, something that alarmed Ino.

She tried to stand again, slightly astounded at the amount of effort that it took. Slightly huffing, she walked over to the bathroom mirror, and gasped at the reflection that was returned.

Hinata Hyuuga.

* * *

notes**—****Hi**** :) ****Remember ****me****? ****kristy****? ****I ****remember ****you**** :) ****I ****hope ****this ****super****-****long ****chapter ****makes ****up ****for ****my ****absence ****from ****this ****story****, ****even ****if ****just ****a ****little ****bit**** :3 ****I ****really ****really ****hope ****you ****liked ****this ****chapter****, ****and ****would ****love ****it ****if ****you ****left ****a ****review****! ****If ****you ****do****, ****I****'****ll ****update ****faster****, ****pinky ****promise****!**


End file.
